Up to 6,000 women facing repeat smear tests

Up to 6,000 women facing repeat smear tests

Up to 6,000 women in Ireland will need repeat CervicalCheck smear tests due to testing issues.

The HSE has confirmed that a problem was reported by an external laboratory over delays in processing initial tests.

The HSE said in November 2018 Quest Laboratories advised CervicalCheck, the state service that provides free smear tests to women, of a “specific problem in relation to standard HPV tests that have been carried out outside of the manufacturer’s recommended timeframe.”

HPV testing is an extra screening which is carried out on low-grade abnormality samples.

Up to 6,000 women will likely be called for a repeat smear, as their smear samples were not tested in the recommended time. CervicalCheck will be contacting affected women by the end of next week.

An expert clinical team has been set up to establish the facts with the lab and review the situation.

Dr McKenna said it was a “precaution” that some women would be recalled for a second test, due to the length of time it took to process their first one.

Free smear tests were offered to women in Ireland at the height of the CervicalCheck controversy, which led to a 20% increase in testing levels and 42,000 repeat tests taken. Women are currently facing backlogs of up to six months as they wait on test results.